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"The company's aim, according to co-founder, Brian Glassar, is to 'combine high technology and precision engineering with a jeweller's craftsmanship.'"

Manufacturer: Granite City Mechanician

Price: You'd better ask George ...

Contact: Granite City Mechanician Ltd, do George Chaides,Oldtown,South Road lnsch, Aberdeenshire, AB52 6XN

� (+44) 01464820852

Text: Matt Bielby

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G Wells' The Time Machine,

first published 100 years ago

this year, is one of the

landmarks of science fiction.

Generally thought of as the

first "hard" science fiction novel - Frankenstein, regarded since

Aldiss as the first SF novel, is more "science fantasy" -it contains some of the most

striking SF images ever conceived, not least

the Time Machine itself. A beautiful brass­

and-copper Victorian contraption, it's been

depicted numerous times, but never more

strikingly than in George Pal's classic 1960

film. Everyone here in the SFX office has wanted to own one for yonks. And now,

perhaps, some of us can ... This gorgeous model is the first production

from Aberdeen"s Granite City Mechanician, a company founded by Brian Glasser, a university lecturer in three-dimensional design, and George Chaides, a pilot/technician of remote-operated submarines, more used to working off North Sea oil rigs than manufacturing models. Their new company has positioned itself at the high end of the market-the models are handmade, editions are limited, and the aim. according to Brian. is to "combine h,gh technology and precision engineering with a jeweller's craftsmanship."

Precision is certainly the name of the game with this first model. Licensed from Turner Home

Granite City Mechanician has created a stunningly faithful small-scale version of the George Pal Time Machine.

Entertainment, it's extremely faithful to the George Pal version, with the measurements taken directly from the original props. It's built to 1/12th scale, which works out at 10.5" long by 10.5" tall by 8.5",

and gives it a 7.5" diameter copper dish. The railings are made of brass, the base of

Swiss pearwood, the motor housing and chair of white metal alloy, and it's decorated with 21 I ights. There's even a microprocessor on board, there to

control the complex light sequence, which reproduces the one seen

in the film, and implement various mechanical

operations. In fact, this Time Machine can do everything Wells' did -except, naturally enough, travel backwards and

forwards through time! So far, over 40Time Machine

models have been ordered by collectors all over the world. If you're interested in fi11ding out more, or order;ng one, send an SAE to George at the

address above. Be warned, though, they're not

cheap -coming in at around £5,000 each I But then this isn't yer average vinyl model, is it? Rest assured, if we got paid more here at SFX, • there'd be a few cheques winging their way to Aberdeen right about now ... �